The present invention relates to accessing a voice response unit through an Internet web server.
The Internet has become an increasing popular medium of communication. One popular Internet application is the World Wide Web, which allows users to access servers using a graphical interface. Web access is available using commonly available personal computer hardware and a web browser application.
Another Internet application that is growing in popularity is Internet telephony. There are a number of Internet telephony devices and emerging services that allow a user with a personal computer, which has been properly configured with additional hardware and software, to access other like-equipped personal computers and, through gateways, telephones. Typically, these devices use analog-to-digital speech conversion with packetizing to create a duplex voice-band communication channel. Many of these paths cannot transport touch-tone control signals, such as are used to control voice response units. Other arrangements are not convenient to use, as they require complicated audio input set-ups to work properly.
Voice response units require callers to enter touch-tone control signals to navigate audio menu selections and obtain information or perform functions. Internet users desiring to access voice response units over the Internet are unable to conveniently do so. Internet telephony devices either are inconvenient to use, require complicated additional hardware, or don""t work at all. The web graphical interface cannot be used because current web servers have not been interfaced with voice response units. It would be useful to provide the capability for Internet users to access voice response units.
The present invention is a method and system of providing a remote user with access to a voice response unit, which allows Internet users to access voice response units using a web graphical interface. Popular personal computer hardware configurations may be -used, without the need to add additional hardware.
In one aspect, the present invention includes an Internet telephone services node, which includes a web server, a voice switch, a touch tone generator and an audio streaming server. The web server is communicatively coupled to a client computer system of the remote user. The voice switch initiates a call to a voice response unit in response to a signal from the web server. The touch-tone generator generates a touch-tone signal in response to a signal from the web server, and transmits the touch-tone signal to the voice response unit through the voice switch. The audio streaming server receives an audio signal from the voice response unit through the voice switch, digitizes the audio signal and transmits the digitized audio signal to the client computer system.
In another aspect, in order to provide a remote user with access to a voice response unit, the Internet telephone services node receives a request for access to the voice response unit from the remote user. Communications with the voice response unit are established. An audio signal is received from the voice response unit and information to be displayed to the remote user, which corresponds to the received audio message, is transmitted to the remote user.